Latest
Android and Music and Radio and Streaming
App Reviews

The debate between kindle readers and physical paper book readers has raged for a few years now and avid readers seem to have divided into one or the other. Ebook readers love the ease and simplicity of reading a book on their kindle without having shelf loads of books cluttering up their homes while paper book readers love the pure pleasure of holding a book in their hands rather than a piece of plastic. Personally, I think the kindle has a fair way to go to fulfill its obvious potential. However, there is another way of 'reading' books that seems ...
Read more

You'd think we'd have all learned our lesson these days about computer security. While Edward Snowden's efforts are probably out of the leagues of most people, it does seem rather silly to leave our work computers unlocked and vulnerable when we are away from our desk or when we go home at night. That's why the Gatekeeper Chain (or GK Chains) app was created. It lets you auto-lock and unlock your computer when you walk away and toward it...amongst other things. Gatekeeper - Locate and Alert is an Android and iOS app that works in conjunction with the GK Chain ...
Read more

Without a doubt, one of the most frustrating things about dealing with businesses is trying to communicate with them. Whether it is dealing with an automated telephone system where you have to press countless buttons just to reach a human being or simply being kept on hold for ages listening to bad Kenny G musak. It's not an ideal situation. Big business does have the benefit of having plenty of staff to answer queries but, if you are a small organization, you generally aren't afforded that luxury. Pure Chat is a live chat application for iOS and Android that lets ...
Read more

Privacy on our mobile phones has been much discussed over the last few years. Whether it be the 'theft' of photos or personal details, it's probably even more of a problem now than it was two years ago - and we still haven't really come to grips with it. Many of us are lazy with our devices and they are often left hanging around unattended for anyone to pick up and view. The solutions have often been weighty, clumsy or expensive apps that are inconvenient to use and can offer up as many problems as they solve. Privacy Lock is ...
Read more

Being a bit of an artist in my spare time, I've been looking at a lot of clouds lately. The most amazing thing about them is that, apart from their basic atmospheric structure, every single one of them is completely different. Unfortunately, most of the apps that track and inform us about our weather, tend not to be quite so unique. Here is one that takes its name from one of the most beautiful cloud formations up there and offers something a little more bespoke. Cirrus One has been in development for a number of years and finally gets its ...
Read more

The world is not a very happy place right now. Just look at the news. There's trouble in the Middle East and Europe, and Africa is a minefield just waiting to explode. The fact is, as individuals, we can't really have much control over what's happening in the word. We can have some control in our own individual happiness, however. MyHappiness is a social self-help application for iOS and Android that can be used as a personal happiness trainer as well as a platform to keep a record of your happy times and your not-so-happy times. This fun set of ...
Read more

Have a look around you. I bet you have a ton of stuff that works perfectly well and yet you don't use very much - if at all. Most households are the same. We've all got useful stuff that is just taking up space in our homes. Your nextdoor neighbor or the family down the road probably have the same situation. The fact is, when we need something like a circular saw or a bicycle or a microwave, we just go out and buy a new one rather than asking if our neighbors have one that we can buy or ...
Read more

There has been a huge amount of conversation lately about the security of our communications - whether it be online or on your phone. In America, Europe and Australia, Governments have been desperately trying to put legislation in place so that they can monitor the online activities of potential terrorists but many of these actions appear to be somewhat disproportionate responses. Apart from the obvious invasion of privacy issue, if the NSA can have access to your private information then, chances are, there are others who might also be able to get their hands on it. SQURE messenger is a ...
Read more

Music is a strange thing. We are all affected by it in different ways and have different expectations when we listen to it. Some of us want to know everything about our favorite artists including their inside leg measurement while others aren't quite so fussy and just want to have some decent and familiar music to while away the hours and hum along to. Music streaming apps have latched onto this and there are now a squillion different places to access the music that you love. Pandora is probably the oldest of the free internet music streaming services and likes ...
Read more

SpotifyA world of music. Instant,...PandoraIt’s a new kind of radio –...

Review posted Thu 31 Jul '14

When Apple handed over US$3 billion to rapper Dr. Dre and producer Jimmy Iovine for their Beats Electronics headphones business recently it signalled a probable change in the way that we will listen to music in the future. With technology moving at such a rapid pace it was only a matter of time before our music listening habits would be put to the test once again.It all began, of course, with vinyl records and the radio being our main sources of listening pleasure. It wasn't until the 70's that the cassette and the much-loved 8 -track were introduced to the ...
Read more